Chapter 4: The Poisonous Fog Swamp

No, I am very hungry, I want to eat—" The child pouted and began to cry out.

Sun Yaojie’s words startled everyone around him, and soon some people began to push forward, eager to retrieve the knife from the wooden box

Shi Lei tugged at Lin Xiao's clothing and said softly, "Lin Xiao, shall we go down?"

Wū——

"Damascus knife, I have also heard this name, it seems to be the foremost among the three famous knives in the world. However, why is this place filled with such short knives? Don't you find it too strange?"

Behind this wall, there is a row of giant wooden crates. These crates appear to be quite old, and many of them have already begun to show signs of decay

Lin Xiao squeezed in front of the stone pillar and looked up to see a line of text written on the wooden sign

Beside the middle-aged man stood a young man approximately 1.9 meters tall. This young man was tall and thin, standing there like a bamboo pole, making him quite conspicuous. He also held a short knife in his hand and displayed a look of surprise as he inquired.

Lin Xiao also noticed the wooden sign hanging from the stone pillar not far away. Many people were gathered in front of the stone pillar, looking at the sign and whispering among themselves

Ye Dongling glared at Fang Zhirong and said, "Stop scaring people for no reason. If such a monster really comes again, it would be best to eat you first."

The middle-aged man suddenly noticed that there were quite a few infants, only a few years old, in the crowd, and added another remark

"We have arrived at the station, this is a train station," someone exclaimed excitedly

Upon seeing that these giant wooden crates were filled with exquisite short swords, the crowd that had gathered around exchanged glances with one another

Everyone, please do not push. I told you not to push!" A middle-aged man suddenly raised his voice and shouted. He had a fierce appearance, and this shout was indeed effective; the crowd that had been pushing forward came to a halt.

"Dad, Mom, I am hungry," said one of the little children, who was only three or four years old, shaking the hands of his parents and speaking in a tender voice

"Baby, be good, just hold on a little longer, food will be ready soon." The child's mother had no choice but to comfort him

His words sent a shockwave through the hearts of those around him

Ah

Sun Yaojie said: "Indeed, that is why it is written here that the previous station is called 'Stoneclaw Beast' Den. Those beasts should indeed be called 'Stoneclaw Beasts'. That place is the den of the Stoneclaw Beasts, which is why there are so many ferocious beasts. From this, we can deduce that this place is called 'Toxic Fog Marsh', and the next station is unknown. To board the ghost train that runs once every seven days to the next station, the required ticket is the 'Horn of the Stoneclaw Beast', which refers to the stone horn located in the center of the forehead of those beasts whose skin resembles rock."

Sun Yaojie said in a low voice: "I believe that the short knives in these wooden boxes have been prepared for us"

"Little brother, how should this be said?" The middle-aged man looked up at Sun Yaojie

Sun Yaojie furrowed his brows and said, "Let's go down and take a look; those people are gathered around that bulletin board, but I don't know what they are looking at."

Fang Zhirong touched his chubby face, staring at the bulletin board on the stone pillar, murmuring: "What does this mean? Stone Claw Beast's lair... Poisonous Fog Marsh, Ghost Train..."

Lin Xiao looked at the place where the black train had vanished and suddenly said, "The train that brought us here and just disappeared should be the ghost train referred to above."

Departure Station: Stoneclaw Beast's Lair, Current Station - Map - Book: Toxic Fog Marsh, Arrival Station: Unknown. The Ghost Train passes through this station once every seven days. No ticket is required to board the Ghost Train to the departure station, while a ticket consisting of one 'Stoneclaw Beast's Horn' is required for the arrival station

A few individuals opened the wooden box and successively took out a short knife. A middle-aged man with a full beard, looking somewhat fierce, picked up the short knife, made a couple of feigned slashes, and then reached out to feel the blade, saying: "If I am not mistaken, these are not ordinary short knives. This short knife is made from Uzi steel ingots, and the patterns on it were formed during the casting process, which is quite unique and is also known as the Muhammad pattern. This type of knife is the most famous Damascus knife, and just this one alone is quite valuable. I never expected that the wooden box would be filled with such knives."

"It is the station, we are saved," another person exclaimed with joy.

Ye Dongling nodded repeatedly and interjected, "Do you all remember the attacks we faced from those beasts before? Their skin was like rock, with stone-like horns, and their claws had a rocky coloration. Could those possibly be called 'Stoneclaw Beasts'?"

"Hello, staying here like this is not a solution. The phone has no signal, and we cannot contact the outside world. It seems impossible to rely on others to rescue us; we need to come up with a plan ourselves." The tall, slender man, who is about 1.9 meters tall, suddenly spoke up.

Except for a few children, the remaining eight or nine hundred people, regardless of gender, each held a knife. Lin Xiao also took a short knife, testing its blade. This finely crafted curved short knife made of Damascus steel truly lived up to its name; it felt heavy in hand and was incredibly sharp. With sufficient strength, it could even cut through a small tree as thick as a wrist.

Although this middle-aged man appeared fierce, he possessed considerable leadership skills. He issued commands in quick succession, and soon everyone lined up as instructed, forming a long queue in front of each wooden box, from which they successively received a knife.

Fang Zhirong remarked: "But who can explain clearly why, after the accident of our S601 train, things have turned out this way? What are these stone-claw beasts, what is this ghost train, and now what is this poisonous fog swamp? Moreover, this ghost train operates once every seven days. Can anyone explain this?"

Shi Lei was taken aback

Suddenly, a cry of surprise came from behind. Lin Xiao hurriedly turned around, only to see that there were still some people on the black train. At that moment, it was as if an invisible force was throwing those who remained on top down one by one

All the daggers are identical, filling these giant wooden boxes. At a glance, there are at least several hundred to a thousand of them.

Lin Xiao nodded, agreeing with Sun Yaojie’s inference

Lin Xiao pondered slightly, yet had not responded. Fang Zhirong mumbled suddenly, "It looks rather strange outside; what if there is another monster with a horn?"

This place appears to be a desolate wilderness, and no one can be certain that there are no wild beasts here. The appearance of these short knives is by no means a coincidence. Perhaps... this area is quite dangerous, and these knives are meant for our self-defense.

This middle-aged man exclaimed in admiration, clearly knowledgeable about knives, gently stroking the short blade in his hand, his face revealing a look of astonishment.

Sun Yaojie was taken aback, adjusted his glasses on the bridge of his nose, and exclaimed: "Indeed, what could be more suitable than the ghost train for the recently vanished eerie train? According to the information on this sign, this station seems to be called 'Toxic Fog Swamp', and the ghost train appears here once every seven days"

The sound of "clang clang" echoed as the black train began to move once again. On the ground, the tracks appeared, and this black locomotive sped away rapidly along the rails towards the distance

These characters are a blood-red color, emanating a chilling aura

At this moment, all the lids of the wooden boxes in this row have been opened, revealing that they are filled with curved short knives, each approximately one foot long. These short knives are adorned with intricate patterns, resembling flowing clouds and water, extraordinarily beautiful, and they appear as exquisite as works of art

Holding a short knife in hand, coupled with the gathering of several hundred people, the courage of the crowd increased significantly.

Lin Xiao and others also got off the train one after another. He noticed that quite a few people had crowded to the front of the locomotive, seemingly wanting to see the situation in the cab. However, judging by the noisy scene, they likely found nothing of interest.

The crowd squeezed in front of the stone pillar, all looking at the information on it, exchanging glances with one another

The sound came from behind a wall on the other side, and everyone heard the exclamation, rushing over in that direction. Lin Xiao, Sun Yaojie, Wen Ningxuan, Ye Dongling, and Wu Wenxu also hurried over.

Soon, everyone who was still on the train was thrown out, followed by a series of loud bangs as the train doors closed automatically

While taking the train, they all had prepared food, but this food was stored in their carry-on luggage or bags. When the train suddenly encountered an accident, everyone was busy escaping, and there was no time to take their luggage and bags with them.

Fang Zhirong raised several questions at https://m.hetushu.com, and Lin Xiao and others fell silent. Suddenly, someone in the distance exclaimed: "Everyone, come and take a look here—"

The long whistle of the steam train echoed, and suddenly, a large column of steam erupted from the black locomotive. Inside the black train, the lights that had originally been extinguished flickered back to life, shining brightly.

Soon, the black train completely vanished from the sight of the crowd, leaving eight or nine hundred people in this entirely unfamiliar place, looking at one another in bewilderment

This young man speaks quite sensibly. Regardless of whether there is danger, it is always prudent for everyone to have a knife for self-defense. If we encounter a wild beast like before, we will have the ability to fight back. However, everyone should avoid crowding together. There are at least a thousand knives in these boxes, enough for each person to have one. Everyone can take one knife, but very young children should be excluded to prevent any accidental injuries.

Soon, a considerable number of people poured out of the train, looking around to see if there were others present.

Indeed, staying here all the time is not a solution, another person whispered

It is impossible to describe the speed at which this black train races forward, accompanied by a tremendous roar. The black train resembles a massive black dragon, whistling away into the distance. In the blink of an eye, it transforms into a tiny black line, which then becomes a small black dot.

The child's parents busied themselves rummaging through their own pockets, pulling out their phones, wallets, and keys, yet they happened to have no food.

The incident occurred suddenly, leaving these individuals stranded in a remote location, and they let out cries of astonishment

What on earth is going on? That black train is not taking us home at all, " Shi Lei exclaimed in fear.

Fang Zhirong immediately shouted: "Ye Dongling, how could you curse someone?"